West of the River Series (June Jaunt, The Potato Run, and Barbecue Bash Quarters)

Obatron Productions' exercise arm, Obatron Fitness, is proud to offer the fourth year of our race series, West of the River Series! Enter the whole series or choose individual races. Walker and mobility-impaired friendly. Diet sensitive. Training available.

Keep scrolling for an overview of options and more information! If you're on a phone, that might take a bit. When you're ready to register, click the grouping for what you want to go only to those options (Individual Races, Series, Races Including Training). Otherwise, click the "Race Info" tab to see all options at once.

2024 Updates and Information

1. The Potato Run is going back to its original weekend: the Sunday before Labor Day. As such, it cannot be a Rochester Runner of the Year race since it would compete directly with Oaktree Half, a long-established RROY race. 
2. June Jaunt is still a Rochester Runner of the Year race. 
3. Barbecue Bash Quarters will be certified! This means those who are looking for an autumn race to attempt a Boston Marathon qualifying time can use their 2024 time for their 2026 BM application. 
4. Anyone who joins Obatron Racing Team prior to registration gets a discount off each individual race, the series, or the races (individually or as a series) with training.
5. Each race will have very modest awards, which must be claimed BEFORE leaving. None will be held. They will be ready no earlier than 45 minutes after the start of each race and will be later for longer races. Watch event messages for details closer to each race. See "Awards" below for more information.
6. Series registrants will be able to pick their shirt options for June Jaunt in the Giveaway section and will be asked about their preferences in another section for questions for the other two races.
7. We are offering packet pick-up the day before every race! If you register within three days of the race, your packet will not likely be ready until race morning.

Special Component of Barbecue Bash Quarters

You can choose to run 1, 2, 3, or all 4 quarters of a marathon (6.55 to 26.2 miles) for Barbecue Bash Quarters (BBQ), formerly Barbecue Bash Half. What's more is that you can adjust down during the race if you need to, so if you started out with the idea of getting a marathon done and it's just not in the cards that day, you will not DNF your race; instead, you'll be bumped down to the last quarter you did finish. On the flipside, you can't decide to upgrade while on the course; that has to be done by the end of packet pick-up on race day so you can pay the appropriate difference in cost and so that Hourglass Works can re-map your timing chip attached to your bib. Accompanying friends for an entire lap after you've finished your race is discouraged for various reasons, including difficulty in accurately conveying to authorities and volunteers how many racers are left. There are no early starts. If you need a race with even more generous cutoffs than ours, we have some suggestions.

When to Race and Related Details 

June Jaunt, 5K
Race Date/Time/Location: Sunday, June 16 (Father's Day), 8:45 a.m. (an hour earlier than 2022) at Studio 22, 67 Old Hojack Lane, Hilton, New York 14468.
Shirt Cutoff: Register on or before May 29, 2024
Cutoff Time: 1 hour, 15 minutes (8:45 am. to 10 a.m.) with a pace of 24:12 per mile or faster
Course: https://www.mapmyrun.com/routes/view/5556356155/
Packet Pick-up
Day 1: June 15, 10:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. @ Greece Canal Park, Millennium Lodge Parking Lot (RD's Car or Picnic Table, depending on weather); UPDATE: Available for all registrants whose registration is processed through the end of Thursday night. Please come to this if at all possible. 
Day 2: June 16, 8:00-8:30 a.m. @ Studio 22

The Potato Run, 10K
Race Date/Time/Location: Sunday, September 1, 8:30 a.m. at Greece Canal Park (GCP), Towpath Shelter (near the Canal Path) 241 Elmgrove Rd., Rochester, NY 14626
Shirt Cutoff: Register on or before August 14, 2024
Cutoff Time: 2 hours, 15 minutes (8:30 a.m. to 10:45 a.m.) with a pace of 21:46 per mile or faster
Course: https://www.mapmyrun.com/routes/view/4803075880
Packet Pick-up
Day 1: GCP, Millennium Lodge Parking Lot (exact location TBD), August 31, 10:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. only for those registered by 4 p.m. on 8/28 
Day 2: RACE DAY! September 1, 7:45 a.m. to 8:15 a.m., GCP, Towpath Shelter

Barbecue Bash Quarters, 1/4, 2/4 (Half Marathon), 3/4, or 4/4 (Full) Marathon
Race Date/Time/Location: Sunday, November 3 (Daylight Savings Time Ends), All start at 7:30 a.m. at Spencerport Depot and Canal Museum (SD&CM), 16 East Ave, Spencerport, NY 14559
Shirt Cutoff: Register on or before October 16, 2024 (UPDATE: The shirt order hasn't gone in as of 10/18, so we've left the size collection open. Any registrations by 10 p.m. on 10/20 will get a shirt; after that, even if it's open, shirt gifts are not guaranteed.)
Cutoff Time: 7 hours (7:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m.) for all options. 1 Quarter Pace: 1:04:07; 2 Quarters Pace: 32:04; 3 Quarters Pace: 21:22; 4 Quarters Pace: 16:02
Course: https://www.mapmyrun.com/routes/view/5811055855 (Route slightly modified from past years to make certification easier and the path smoother.)
Packet Pick-up
Day 1: November 2, 4 p.m. to 7 p.m., SD&CM, Top Floor; UPDATE: I've got the timing chips and remaining bibs, so ALL racers can pick up at this time, even if you JUST registered
Day 2: November 3, 6:45 a.m. to 7:15 a.m., SD&CM, Top Floor (This is our busiest race; do not wait until race day if you can help it.)

Race Gift Giveaways: Again, this year we are giving away shirts with entries. The sizing cutoffs are May 29, August 14, and October 16, respectively. If you miss the shirt cutoff, if time and supplies allow, you will be given a substitute race gift. Due to the high cost of shirt production, we do not order extras at this time. If you check in on-site after the race is over, we may have shirts from people who don't show up.

Series Information

Registration for or upgrading to the whole series should be done before June 16. If you do all three races, but do not register for the series, we cannot guarantee you will get the gift due to administrative logistics of tracking participants. 

When you register for the series, there's only one spot for choosing a giveaway cut/size, so that will be applicable only to the first race, June Jaunt. You will see questions for your cut/size preference for the other two races in a separate question section along with other registration questions to help us shape the race. When it's closer to the race time, the RD will transfer you to each individual race. If you miss the giveaway cutoff, you are not guaranteed a shirt for June Jaunt. If time and supplies allow, those who miss the shirt may be given a substitute race gift. 

What You Get

• pacers and/or lead bikes for select races and paces, including a final finisher escort (on foot or bike) for whoever is the last person on the course
• medal on race day
• technical race shirts, if registered in time, and an alternate gift if time and supplies allow, if not
• food-themed kits appropriate to each race
• series participants get a preparation and recovery kit with their June Jaunt packet pick-up (late conversions will get theirs while supplies last)
• value priced training, should you choose to register for it
• opportunities to earn more swag and chances to win random prizes on race day
• personalized bib if registered by each race's giveaway (shirt) cutoff
• chance to make a donation to our Charity Partners for any of three food-related charities on the west side of Monroe County
• 20% discount on any order at Foot Kinetics (see sponsors)
• connectivity to other racers via the Obatron Fitness Conversation Space Facebook group
• Sundae & Frozen Fruit Bar for June Jaunt, Salt Potato Bar for The Potato Run, and Barbecue Bar for Barbecue Bash Quarters
• generous cutoff times (June Jaunt: 1 hr., 15 min., The Potato Run: 2 hr., 15 min., Barbecue Bash Quarters: 7 hrs.)

Other

You might have surmised there is an emphasis on food! I grew up hungry until I could earn money myself to buy food, and while my company, Obatron Fitness, isn't a non-profit, each race will include three charitable components: 1) fundraising drive via registration for each host town's food program for those in need; 2) a food drive for the same organization on race day; and 3) a portion of proceeds after expenses are covered will be donated to the organization.

Discount Offers & Referrals
Entering the series rather than individual races gets you pricing equal to or less than the total of the individual race fees (depending upon when you register), a lower RunSignUp fee than the sum of the fees when registering separately, and a series gift. The training offered through the series registration page is at a much reduced price from when we train folks for races other than our own. If you are a member of GRTC or Obatron Race Team, you get a discount at checkout for that. Additionally, you may earn back some of your registration by having other racers use your personal referral link, generated after you register. See the "Referrals" section for more information.

Awards & Raffles
We provide modest awards for the first-place finishers in each gender designation for overall placements and in age groups (AG). Our age group awards are meant to be fun tokens of acknowledgement and in the spirit of the races. We've had keychains, seasonings, and phone holders, among other prizes, in the past. Winners of Race Prizes or Raffles must be present or have someone as their proxy to claim their awards at the race day presentation or they are forfeited, likely being raffled off to volunteers at the end. There will be a modest prize for the series winner sent December or later, after the whole series concludes.

Additional Details
We will post additional details as they occur. Any changes will be updated here, on the Obatron Fitness Facebook page, in our Facebook group, and communicated through RunSignUp messaging. Please note, as the pandemic has proven, life is unpredictable! It is possible that changes in time and location could occur for reasons beyond our control. Keep an eye on your email for race communications to ensure you know all you need to know about the race(s).

Training
Race trainees meet at Greece Canal Park (241 Elmgrove Rd., Rochester, NY 14626) on Saturdays at the Millennium Lodge parking lot at 8 a.m. and Tuesdays/Thursdays at or near Towpath Shelter's parking lot at 6 p.m. (nearby when it's too dark in the fall). There are some dates where group training workouts will not occur. Note: The training starts the date of the event listed as "with Training."